INCLUSION WINNIPEG 60TH ANNIVERSARY

Mothers, fathers, sons and daughters; friends and neighbours; believers in inclusive communities, welcome to Government House and this celebration of 60 years of building a community for all.

We are gathered on Treaty One land, on the traditional territory of the Anishinaabe and the homeland of the Metis people.

Today, we are coming together during a season of giving to celebrate an organization that has been working for 60 years to make Manitoba a more caring place.

At this time of year, when the days are colder and the nights are longer, we have always counted on love and kindness to keep us warm and to brighten our outlook.

It’s clear from the crowded parking lots at malls and the delivery trucks bringing parcels to homes, that some of that love and kindness finds expression in material gifts.

But the gifts that warm us the most are gifts of time and togetherness.

The hundreds of thousands of Manitobans who give their time to benefit others know that reaching out is what makes this time of year special – and what extends this season’s spirit through to spring, summer and fall.

They also know that the joy of caring is multiplied when we open the doors to include everybody.

Inclusion Winnipeg has been putting those ideas into practice for 60 years.

Your projects, activities and workshops make our province more inclusive. You connect individuals and families, you support human rights, and you help to nurture friendships.

In a province that recently celebrated the 100th anniversary of the first extension of the vote to women, a province that did so much to create the idea of a multicultural Canada, a province that is home of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, we have a long tradition of working for a more inclusive society.

So as volunteers, leaders, supporters and members of the Inclusion Winnipeg family, you represent Manitoba at its best.

As we approach the 60th anniversary of your founding, I thank you for all you’ve done for Manitoba and wish you all the joy of this season